World geography: regions, globalization, and resources (grade 9)

The Suez Canal in Egypt links the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea. Ships from Europe to Asia can pass through instead of sailing all the way around the southern tip of Africa, saving thousands of miles.

A chokepoint is a narrow passage that a large share of trade must squeeze through. The Strait of Hormuz carries a large share of the world's seaborne oil. If a chokepoint is blocked, shipments to many countries can be cut off or delayed.

Globalization means places are more connected through trade, travel, and ideas. A product may be designed in one country, have parts made in another, and be assembled in a third. This is a global supply chain. Each step happens where it costs least or where the needed skills are.

A chocolate bar starts with cacao grown in West Africa. The beans are fermented and dried, shipped overseas, made into bars in a factory, and finally sold in stores.

An export is a good sold to another country, and an import is bought from one. A tariff is a tax on imports. When countries in a group like the European Union drop tariffs among themselves, trade grows and firms can sell to a bigger market.

Globalization brings more imported goods to local stores. It can also close local factories when production moves to cheaper places. Cultures mix, but they don't become identical.

As places develop, fewer people farm and more work in services like health care, teaching, and banking. Machines and trade let a few farmers feed many people. Regions with mostly service workers tend to have higher incomes.

Some countries rich in one resource, like oil, grow more slowly than expected. When the world price of their main export falls, their income falls sharply. Other industries may never grow, because everything depends on that one product. This is called the resource curse.